Author: realizeorganizeanalize

Nourish Your Body: Benefits of Beets and Oranges

My first post will be one of my favorite salads ever. I love this and I am trying to learn a bit about Traditional Chinese Medicine. It is a bit hard for me since the country I live in is a Mediterranean country and has no real connection to China. However because I love food and I think that food is like medicine to the body . It nourishes and gives energy.I have heard that food is really important in Chinese medicine I am trying to learn a bit about it slowly. I am using AI and chatgpt mainly and I am not certain if the suggestions are accurate but will try and experiment with its suggestion and post again a good recipe based on them.

What is more , it is very enjoyable trying to combine cuisines and create new tastes and experiment in general so I will enjoy the process of making something good.

My Recipe

  • boiled beets
  • 2 oranges
  • raisins
  • sunflower seeds
  • honey – 1/2 tablespoon
  • 4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • olive oil
  • salt & pepper

How Each Ingredient Affects the Body (TCM Perspective)

Boiled Beets

  • Nature: Slightly cooling
  • Flavor: Sweet
  • TCM Action: Nourish and build Blood, support Liver function, improve circulation. Especially helpful for dryness, fatigue, and mild Blood deficiency.

Oranges

  • Nature: Cooling
  • Flavor: Sweet and sour
  • TCM Action: Regulate Qi, support the Spleen and Lungs, transform phlegm, and add freshness. They help relieve stagnation but can weaken digestion if overused.

Raisins

  • Nature: Warm
  • Flavor: Sweet
  • TCM Action: Tonify Blood and Yin, gently strengthen Qi, and balance the cooling nature of fruits. Support energy and gentle nourishment.

Sunflower Seeds

  • Nature: Neutral
  • Flavor: Sweet
  • TCM Action: Strengthen Qi, nourish fluids, and support intestinal lubrication. Helpful for dryness and grounding the meal.

Honey

  • Nature: Neutral to slightly warm
  • Flavor: Sweet
  • TCM Action: Tonifies Qi, moistens dryness, harmonizes ingredients, and softens the strong effects of vinegar and citrus.

Balsamic Vinegar

  • Nature: Warm
  • Flavor: Sour
  • TCM Action: Moves Qi and Blood, breaks stagnation, and aids digestion. Strongly activating; excessive amounts may irritate the Spleen.

Olive Oil

  • Nature: Neutral
  • TCM Action: Nourishes Yin and body fluids, supports smooth digestion, and prevents dryness.

Salt & Pepper

  • Nature: Salt – cooling, Pepper – warm
  • TCM Action: Salt softens and directs inward; pepper stimulates circulation and digestion. Together they balance movement and grounding.

The Overall Energetic Picture of the Recipe

From a TCM point of view, this recipe:

  • Nourishes and moves Blood
  • Promotes Liver Qi circulation
  • Balances sweet and sour flavors
  • Leans slightly cooling with warming accents

It is particularly suitable for:

  • Springtime
  • Mild Liver Qi stagnation
  • Fatigue with dryness
  • Emotional tension related to stress

Caution for those with:

  • Weak digestion or loose stools
  • Excess Dampness
  • Strong internal Heat

My Thoughts

This recipe is very tasty and healthy. It has a slightly tangy taste and if you use good quality ingredients like fresh boiled beets and oranges the taste gets elevated immediately . You will love and it will be a steady go to when you are wondering what to cook.

Improvements Based on TCM

1. Balance the Sour Flavor

  • Reduce balsamic vinegar to 2 tablespoons to protect the Spleen
  • Add a small amount of orange zest to move Qi without excess acidity

2. Strengthen Digestive Support

  • Add lightly toasted walnuts, almonds, or sesame seeds
  • These enhance warmth and grounding

3. Support Cold or Weak Digestion

  • Add a pinch of cinnamon or freshly grated ginger
  • This helps warm the middle burner and improve assimilation

Improved TCM-Balanced Version (Summary)

  • Boiled beets
  • 2 oranges
  • Raisins
  • Sunflower seeds or walnuts
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • Olive oil
  • Orange zest
  • Optional: cinnamon or ginger

Lifestyle Experiments: Join My Journey to Self-Improvement

This blog is a journey for me to improve my life and create my internet presence. I have a lot of hobbies and my goal is to follow my motto and finally do the changes needed in my life to improve it. My motto is realize, organize, analyze. There are many ways to see life some of us see it as a series of events, some of us see it as a movie and others see it as survival.

I often find that I only recognize the significance of events after they have occurred, often reflecting on them much later. My goal is to experience moments in the intended sequence: first, to identify the day’s main point; next, to structure my days around this main event, ensuring I don’t miss any opportunities; and finally, to analyze the situation after it concludes. This approach serves as a personal retrospective, allowing me to extract valuable life lessons from each experience.

Follow me as I test this path, share lifestyle advice, experiment with different paths , create small love projects that have meaning with my path and generally put my life together by creating rules and systems that I love to follow.

I will create apps, cook , travel and share advice on numerous lifestyle categories but mainly I will enjoy the progress of building something meaningful for me and hopefully for others that will follow me on this journey.